Bank of America (BofA) will soon reduce the eligibility criteria for consumers to qualify for discounts on loans and other benefits, as part of its plan to get more business from existing customers.

An advance announcement was cited by Reuters as saying clients who have minimum $20,000 in deposits and investments with BofA will qualify for the benefits, against the earlier threshold of at least $50,000 in deposits and investments.

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The changes will be gradually implemented starting this week.

Besides providing decreased rates on mortgages and home equity loans, BofA is offering higher interest rates on savings accounts and free stock trades to members of its new ‘preferred rewards’ programme, according to the publication.

The new benefits are part of chief executive Brian Moynihan’s plans to enhance products and services offering to current customers, to boost the balance sheet, according to the news agency.

During 2011, BofA established a preferred banking group to concentrate on the customers, known as ‘mass affluent.’

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In accordance with its strategy, BofA recruited thousands of investment advisers within its retail branches and developed Merrill Edge, an online brokerage focusing on the mass affluent segment.

BofA preferred and small business banking executive in charge Dean Athanasia told: "We have re-pivoted our entire organisation on these clients to better serve them."

Against retail account holders with little savings, BofA’s preferred banking customers "are anywhere from three to four times more profitable, and they have upside potential to grow more and more with us," Athanasia added.

He further added that mass-affluent customers hold $600bn in assets at the Charlotte, North Carolina-based bank, and they also hold $5trn in assets at other financial institutions, which represent a huge opportunity for the bank.